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birte's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
willrefuge's review against another edition
5.0
4.4 / 5 stars
Originally reviewed on: https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/
Soulkeeper was my 9th Dalglish book, and honestly one of the better ones. I’m generally a fan of him—I mean, a lot of his books were good, yet few were solid, 5-star reads (mostly 3.5 – 4). Soulkeeper begins the Keepers’ series, one that feels a combination of new age and classic, with but a hint of dark fantasy. The Shadowdance series was definitely more in the vein of dark fantasy, though not enough that I’d call it grimdark. Soulkeeper is more what I’d call a realistic take on classic fantasy (there’s too much swearing and blood).
Devin Eveson is a Soulkeeper, a practitioner of the Sisters, the three goddesses of mankind. He, like the others, travels from the capital Londheim, to remote towns and villages, to conduct funerary rituals, heal and comfort the sick and dying, and usher souls into the afterlife. But upon visiting the mountain village of Dunwerth, something changes. For he is not only confronted by a mysterious plague that proves well beyond his ability to heal, but waking monsters that are all but beyond his ability to combat. To compound this, a powerful and generally pissed-off dragon has awakened, releasing a torrent of foul, black water that destroys everything in its path. In its wake, Devin is stranded in a barren and alien land, haunted by new and ancient terrors that he must fight his way through in order to make it back to the capital, if it indeed survives. Along the way, Devin gains a few friends and allies—Tomas, his brother-in-law and friend; CRKSSLFF (or Puffy), a firekin and remnant of a world long forgotten—en route to Londheim, though trailing in his wake is something much older, a mountain of stone that walks upon the earth like a crab.
Following Devin’s arrival at Londheim, quite a few more characters are introduced, including—Adria, Devin’s sister and a Mindkeeper (which is kinda like a nun or something; they care for the faithful and needy but don’t make speeches or hobnob with the rich and powerful); Janus, a supernatural being that butchers humans, turning them into his “art”; Tesmarie, a faerie; Jacaranda, a soulless slave that becomes something different entirely. All of these (plus a few more) got POV chapters, most of which I enjoyed. Despite the size of the cast, I never felt the story slow to try to fit them in. Instead one often took over where another left off, something that actually seemed to work well in this case. Sometimes, in fantasy, there are so many threads and story arcs going on that an approach like this won’t fly, and instead might completely wreck the pacing, particularly if some of the characters are uninteresting or slow. I never found this problem, however; the pacing was good, and I never found myself bogged down by a character arc I found uninteresting.
I quite liked the world-building of Soulkeeper; from the world itself, to the characters, to the creation myth and the church and the Awakened. Everything was well done, though I would like to see a bit more lore in the second installment. The dialogue was really the main aspect that bothered me. Ofttimes I felt it campy, or even lame, though this wasn’t altogether unexpected. Dalglish—which I know from his previous books—is a bit like Michael J. Sullivan with his speech and dialogue. By which I mean he favors a normal, or modern, approach, instead of trying to replicate the speech of the time period (like JRR or Miles Cameron) or make up something of his own (á la Sanderson and Robert Jordan and others). Most of the time this is fine, yet at others it can feel… off, or even ridiculous.
Soulkeeper is a fun, entertaining start of a new series, with lovely world-building and an interesting story that kept me intrigued throughout. I would’ve liked to see a bit more lore for the Awakened, the monsters and such, instead of quite so much of the same about the Goddesses. In addition, a little more polish on the dialogue wouldn’t hurt. Otherwise, I really have no complaints—and eagerly await the next one!
The series will continue with Ravencaller, which as of yet has no release date.
Originally reviewed on: https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/
Soulkeeper was my 9th Dalglish book, and honestly one of the better ones. I’m generally a fan of him—I mean, a lot of his books were good, yet few were solid, 5-star reads (mostly 3.5 – 4). Soulkeeper begins the Keepers’ series, one that feels a combination of new age and classic, with but a hint of dark fantasy. The Shadowdance series was definitely more in the vein of dark fantasy, though not enough that I’d call it grimdark. Soulkeeper is more what I’d call a realistic take on classic fantasy (there’s too much swearing and blood).
Devin Eveson is a Soulkeeper, a practitioner of the Sisters, the three goddesses of mankind. He, like the others, travels from the capital Londheim, to remote towns and villages, to conduct funerary rituals, heal and comfort the sick and dying, and usher souls into the afterlife. But upon visiting the mountain village of Dunwerth, something changes. For he is not only confronted by a mysterious plague that proves well beyond his ability to heal, but waking monsters that are all but beyond his ability to combat. To compound this, a powerful and generally pissed-off dragon has awakened, releasing a torrent of foul, black water that destroys everything in its path. In its wake, Devin is stranded in a barren and alien land, haunted by new and ancient terrors that he must fight his way through in order to make it back to the capital, if it indeed survives. Along the way, Devin gains a few friends and allies—Tomas, his brother-in-law and friend; CRKSSLFF (or Puffy), a firekin and remnant of a world long forgotten—en route to Londheim, though trailing in his wake is something much older, a mountain of stone that walks upon the earth like a crab.
Following Devin’s arrival at Londheim, quite a few more characters are introduced, including—Adria, Devin’s sister and a Mindkeeper (which is kinda like a nun or something; they care for the faithful and needy but don’t make speeches or hobnob with the rich and powerful); Janus, a supernatural being that butchers humans, turning them into his “art”; Tesmarie, a faerie; Jacaranda, a soulless slave that becomes something different entirely. All of these (plus a few more) got POV chapters, most of which I enjoyed. Despite the size of the cast, I never felt the story slow to try to fit them in. Instead one often took over where another left off, something that actually seemed to work well in this case. Sometimes, in fantasy, there are so many threads and story arcs going on that an approach like this won’t fly, and instead might completely wreck the pacing, particularly if some of the characters are uninteresting or slow. I never found this problem, however; the pacing was good, and I never found myself bogged down by a character arc I found uninteresting.
I quite liked the world-building of Soulkeeper; from the world itself, to the characters, to the creation myth and the church and the Awakened. Everything was well done, though I would like to see a bit more lore in the second installment. The dialogue was really the main aspect that bothered me. Ofttimes I felt it campy, or even lame, though this wasn’t altogether unexpected. Dalglish—which I know from his previous books—is a bit like Michael J. Sullivan with his speech and dialogue. By which I mean he favors a normal, or modern, approach, instead of trying to replicate the speech of the time period (like JRR or Miles Cameron) or make up something of his own (á la Sanderson and Robert Jordan and others). Most of the time this is fine, yet at others it can feel… off, or even ridiculous.
Soulkeeper is a fun, entertaining start of a new series, with lovely world-building and an interesting story that kept me intrigued throughout. I would’ve liked to see a bit more lore for the Awakened, the monsters and such, instead of quite so much of the same about the Goddesses. In addition, a little more polish on the dialogue wouldn’t hurt. Otherwise, I really have no complaints—and eagerly await the next one!
The series will continue with Ravencaller, which as of yet has no release date.
highlanderajax's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I was right on the edge of 3.75 or 4, and it hits 4 by virtue of feeling better than it is, if that makes sense. This is not a crazy amazing work of literature - the prose is a little basic at times, the dialogue can sound a little jarringly modern, and the last couple of chapters feel a bit rushed - but it's a pretty damn good burger, if you know what I mean. Entertaining, strong setup for a sequel, interesting world that's not been bogged down in too much exposition, characters a bit ropey at times but still strong and fun to read.
This is a really really fun world. A flavour not unlike De Castell in the blend of magic, musketeer-y vibes and a bit of bantering dialogue - not quite as strong, but good enough that Dalglish wouldn't be embarrassed by the comparison. The plot is connected strongly to the overarching mythology of the world, which allows for a lot of the mechanics and sociology of the world to be explained BY the plot - this is hugely helpful in not having everything grind to a halt to establish a setting. The villain(s) are enaging and interesting - Dalglish has managed to strike a good balance between immediate threat and long-term plan, again by weaving the plot and the mythology together very deftly. I like the characters too - they're not the most original bunch, but they're different enough that they can play off one another, have a solid reason to work together and communicate, but all have their distinct stories so they stay engaging and independent. The action is flashy and loose, very much blockbuster movie style - it's not going to be mistaken for Cameron de Castell or even Butcher, but it works with the style of book and it's got enough substance to avoid eye-rolling.
Now, there are downsides. This is not a tightly-crafted masterpiece. The pacing is a bit off, and while the midly slow start didn't bother me, the very rushed ending rather did. A lot of heavy scenes landed within the last, like, 40 pages - which doesn't sound too bad, but in a book that clocks in at over 600, it feels like Dalglish could have spaced things out just a touch, maybe stripped a little out elsewhere. The dialogue is a bit off too; it's mostly fine, but when characters are bantering back-and-forth it has a very distinctly modern tone that broke my immersion just a little. It feels very real and very human, but there's something that sounds very current about it. Again, compare to the Greatcoats series - similar very fluid conversations, but it FEELS older or more fantastical. Hard to describe what it is, but it's definitely there.
Overall, this could use a little polish, grind off some rough edges, and maybe tighten up a few bits and pieces. HOWEVER...this is a really really fun book to read. Dalglish seems to have had fun writing it, and I had fun reading it. There are aspects here that make me feel like I should be harsher and lower my rating, but honestly I enjoyed this book immensely and will be reading the sequel.
This is a really really fun world. A flavour not unlike De Castell in the blend of magic, musketeer-y vibes and a bit of bantering dialogue - not quite as strong, but good enough that Dalglish wouldn't be embarrassed by the comparison. The plot is connected strongly to the overarching mythology of the world, which allows for a lot of the mechanics and sociology of the world to be explained BY the plot - this is hugely helpful in not having everything grind to a halt to establish a setting. The villain(s) are enaging and interesting - Dalglish has managed to strike a good balance between immediate threat and long-term plan, again by weaving the plot and the mythology together very deftly. I like the characters too - they're not the most original bunch, but they're different enough that they can play off one another, have a solid reason to work together and communicate, but all have their distinct stories so they stay engaging and independent. The action is flashy and loose, very much blockbuster movie style - it's not going to be mistaken for Cameron de Castell or even Butcher, but it works with the style of book and it's got enough substance to avoid eye-rolling.
Now, there are downsides. This is not a tightly-crafted masterpiece. The pacing is a bit off, and while the midly slow start didn't bother me, the very rushed ending rather did. A lot of heavy scenes landed within the last, like, 40 pages - which doesn't sound too bad, but in a book that clocks in at over 600, it feels like Dalglish could have spaced things out just a touch, maybe stripped a little out elsewhere. The dialogue is a bit off too; it's mostly fine, but when characters are bantering back-and-forth it has a very distinctly modern tone that broke my immersion just a little. It feels very real and very human, but there's something that sounds very current about it. Again, compare to the Greatcoats series - similar very fluid conversations, but it FEELS older or more fantastical. Hard to describe what it is, but it's definitely there.
Overall, this could use a little polish, grind off some rough edges, and maybe tighten up a few bits and pieces. HOWEVER...this is a really really fun book to read. Dalglish seems to have had fun writing it, and I had fun reading it. There are aspects here that make me feel like I should be harsher and lower my rating, but honestly I enjoyed this book immensely and will be reading the sequel.
hebberelle's review against another edition
4.0
A bit convoluted, but really good world building and interesting storyline.
cosy_crow's review
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
j_swan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
imaginesilentwriter's review against another edition
3.75
adria, tommy, puffy, tesmarie
loves of my life
loves of my life
smurf2416's review against another edition
1.0
A traveling preacher who wanders around as the world is changing, and yet at page 160 I still felt absolutely no plot. It was then flung across the room and a new book was started.
florishimself's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
zeravos's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0